New Caney tow truck driver wrestles 8-foot gator blocking traffic

Craig Hlavat, Houston Chronicle

By Craig Hlavaty, Houston Chronicle

Published 12:35 pm, Tuesday, May 27, 2014

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m. May 26, and helped Montgomery County Precinct 5 deputy constables remove an 8-foot alligator off San Jacinto River Bridge on Texas 242. He released the reptile back into the water.

Photo: Scott Engle / Montgomery County Police Reporter

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m....

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m. May 26, and helped Montgomery County Precinct 5 deputy constables remove an 8-foot alligator off San Jacinto River Bridge on Texas 242. He released the reptile back into the water.
Photo: Scott Engle / Montgomery County Police Reporter

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m....

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m. May 26, and helped Montgomery County Precinct 5 deputy constables remove an 8-foot alligator off San Jacinto River Bridge on Texas 242. He released the reptile back into the water.
Photo: Scott Engle / Montgomery County Police Reporter

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m....

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m. May 26, and helped Montgomery County Precinct 5 deputy constables remove an 8-foot alligator off San Jacinto River Bridge on Texas 242. He released the reptile back into the water.
Photo: Scott Engle / Montgomery County Police Reporter

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m....

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m. May 26, and helped Montgomery County Precinct 5 deputy constables remove an 8-foot alligator off San Jacinto River Bridge on Texas 242. He released the reptile back into the water.
Photo: Scott Engle / Montgomery County Police Reporter

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m....

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m. May 26, and helped Montgomery County Precinct 5 deputy constables remove an 8-foot alligator off San Jacinto River Bridge on Texas 242. He released the reptile back into the water.
Photo: Scott Engle / Montgomery County Police Reporter

New Caney two truck driver Slinky Knox got the call about 1:30 a.m....

An 8-foot road hazard with sharp teeth and green skin blocked traffic north of Houston early Monday morning.

According to the Montgomery County Police Reporter, Montgomery County Precinct 5 constables were called out to a scene just after 1:30 a.m. near the San Jacinto Bridge on Texas 242 where an alligator had parked itself in the middle of the road.

A witness said at least one driver had hit the gator, barely injuring it in the process, Montgomery County Police Reporter said.

Officials called the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department but couldn't get anyone to respond at such a late hour. Instead, according to the Montgomery County Police Reporter, a local tow truck driver with gator experience was called in to wrangle the imposing creature and remove it from the road.

That's where Slinky Knox with New Caney's Saddle Creek Towing comes into the story.

Knox has frequently been enlisted by local law enforcement to help them with alligators, according to his interview with KHOU-TV. Know spoke with the station Monday just after the Memorial Day incident.

Knox couldn't be reached for comment on Tuesday morning.

As previously reported, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department wildlife biologists and game wardens stress each year that education rather than over-reaction is key when it comes interacting with gators. The department would prefer the "live and let live" approach whenever possible.

Alligators can find themselves thrust into precarious interactions with humans as they venture out of retention ponds or drainage ditches.